In a season that will test a team’s depth in every way possible, injuries are throwing another obstacle at the Minnesota Twins‘ starting rotation. Luckily, pitchers around the organization are stepping up and filling the holes. (editor’s note: “that’s what she said”)

INJURIES PLAGUE THE ROTATION

Jake Odorizzi has yet to make his 2020 season debut, due to a right intercostal strain. The All-Star from last season is getting closer and closer to being healthy.

Jake Odorizzi is going to the IL with what Rocco Baldelli describes as upper back soreness.

— Do-Hyoung Park (@dohyoungpark) July 23, 2020

Homer Bailey was solid in his Twins debut, and definitely earned the win. But his season is on hold after being diagnosed with right bicep tendonitis. He threw five innings, giving up just four hits and two runs but landed on the 10-day injured list on Sunday.

The #MNTwins just placed Homer Bailey on the 10-day IL with right biceps tendinitis. Sean Poppen recalled.

Recall that today was Bailey’s original start date but he was originally pushed back a day before this IL announcement.

— Do-Hyoung Park (@dohyoungpark) August 2, 2020

Rich Hill is the most recent starting come up injured. After a stellar Twins debut where he tossed five shutout innings, the 40-year-old found his way on the IL. His first start of the season was already pushed back to give him a bit more time to recover from that offseason surgery. And now, his next start is delayed due to left shoulder fatigue.

Rich Hill is going to the 10-day IL with shoulder fatigue. No corresponding move announced.

— Do-Hyoung Park (@dohyoungpark) August 4, 2020

All three of these injuries would seem to put a damper on this season and be costly for just about every team. However, the Twins have shown that their pitching staff is deep and talented.

THE DEPTH

All was looking good for the Twins in this condensed season. They had a deep starting rotation that consisted of Berrios, Odorizzi, Hill, Maeda and Bailey with Pineda returning mid-season. However, the rotation hasn’t looked anything like they’d thought.

Randy Dobnak jumped into the rotation and has blown past expectations. After seeing him make a playoff start in the Bronx last season, he has pitched his way to a 1.00 ERA in two starts this season. He has helped fill the void left by Odo.

Maeda has been the lone consistent piece of the rotation so far. Berrios has struggled in his first two starts of the season. Maeda is 2-0 for the Twins with an ERA of just 1.64. Berrios is sitting at 1-1 with a 4.80 ERA.

TWINS BULLPEN SAVING THE DAY

Luckily enough, the Twins bullpen has been dominant early in this condensed season. With the rotation so uncertain, the bullpen is stepping up to pick up the slack.

Guys like Romo, Rogers and Duffey are proven relievers Twins’ fans knew they could trust coming into this season. The thing about this bullpen is it goes a lot deeper than that.

Cody Stashak has taken a huge step in his game and is quickly becoming a top reliever in this bullpen. Manager Rocco Baldelli has put trust into Stashak and Stashak shows he deserves it.

Newly acquired reliever Tyler Clippard has stepped in and been huge for the Twins. He even pitched as an opener against his former team and threw two shutout innings. Matt Wisler is a name to keep your eye on too. He has impressed many in 5 and two-thirds shutout innings he’s pitched so far.

The Twins seem like they have been able to cope with these injuries so far. Odorizzi will return soon and hopefully we see the same dominance he displayed last season. Once this rotation is back and healthy and Pineda returns from suspension, the Twins will be even more dangerous.

AJ Condon | Minnesota Sports Fan

The Minnesota Twins shuffled their rotation after defeating the Cleveland Indians 3-0 on Saturday night. They announced that RP Tyler Clippard will serve as an opener for the series finale on Sunday.

Tyler Clippard will open Sunday’s game for the #MNTwins. Homer Bailey will start Monday instead.

— danhayesmlb (@DanHayesMLB) August 2, 2020

This is a method that was first used by the Tampa Rays during the 2018 season. Twins RP Sergio Romo was the first player to serve as an opener for the Rays that year. We could see him as the second pitcher used. Clippard will pitch 1 or 2 innings and then the rest of the bullpen will take over.

Rocco Baldelli emphasized that using the opener on Sunday is about giving Homer Bailey a little more recovery time after the quick ramp up. Same reason he pulled Kenta Maeda after the 6th, offense was on field for long inning. #MNTwins trying to take care of their pitchers. pic.twitter.com/zN3I83jk1F

— danhayesmlb (@DanHayesMLB) August 2, 2020

The originally scheduled starter Homer Bailey will be pushed back until Monday. The Twins then start a 4 game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

One reason for this could to be give Twins SP Jake Odorizzi an extra day to get ready, as he is recovering from soreness in his upper back. Odorizzi is scheduled to have a bullpen session on Monday as he looks to return to the rotation in the near future.

Usually I would be nervous for a game in which we use the opener method, but the way that this bullpen is pitching I have no worries at all.

Cameron Thompson | Minnesota Sports Fan

The Minnesota Twins played their first game at Target Field Tuesday night, defeating the St. Louis Cardinals 6-3. The Twins move to 3-1 on the season, while the Cardinals fall to 2-2. Bombas from Josh Donaldson and Jorge Polanco, another dominant effort from the bullpen and Homer Bailey’s sharp debut all were key in the win.

The Twins lineup looked a little different tonight as CF Byron Buxton made his 2020 debut. Buxton finished the night 0-4 with 1 RBI, 1 run scored, and 1 walk. Although his impact tonight was minimal it is always nice to have a fully healthy lineup.

Minnesota pounced on St. Louis SP Carlos Martinez early, posting 5 runs in the 2nd inning. Jorge Polanco capped the rally with his first Bomba of the year.

Home Bomba. #BombaSquad | #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/jaTeDkIaxu

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) July 29, 2020

Donaldson Joins the Bomba Parade

The Twins most prized free agent acquisition in recent history made his presence felt in his first game as a Twin at Target Field. Josh Donaldson smashed this opposite field homer in the 4th inning.

Josh Donaldson gets his first dinger for the #MNTwins! pic.twitter.com/d90MhrR42T

— Ted (@tlschwerz) July 29, 2020

SP Homer Bailey made his first start in a Twins uniform. Bailey pitched very well earning the win and finishing with a stat line of 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, and 4 K. Bailey would have finished with a much more attractive line if it wasn’t for this one mistake to LF Tyler O’Neill.

Pound for pound pop, I might take Tyler O’Neill over anybody. Dude crushes baseball’s. pic.twitter.com/UfhMlNqEjn

— Patrick Sheehan (@PatrckTweetrson) July 29, 2020

The Twins bullpen shut things down after taking over in the 6th. Tyler Clippard and Cody Stashak both pitched flawless innings. Trevor May gave up a solo shot to Tommy Edman that was almost robbed by Buxton. Finally Sergio Romo came in and pitched the 9th inning earning his first save of the season.

The Best

Josh Donaldson crushes baseballs and proved tonight why he is worth every penny of his 92 million dollar contract. Donaldson will continue to make Thad Levine and Derek Falvey look like geniuses all season.

via my guy @SStrom32 : #MNTwins beat the Cardinals 6-3 and move to 3-1 on the year.

33 runs scored now in four games.

Just to put that in perspective, in the first four games of last season, the MIAMI DOLPHINS scored a combined 32 points. #BombaSquad

— Gandalf the Toups (@sethtoups) July 29, 2020

The Worst

It just didn’t feel right watching a Twins home opener on TV. I am still getting used to hearing fake crowd noises and watching every homer fall into an empty seat. I pray that come April Twins fans will be able to attend the 2021 home opener.

The Twins look for the two game series sweep tomorrow night at 7:10 CT as Rich Hill (0-0) 0.00 ERA takes on Daniel Ponce de Leon (0-0) 0.00 ERA.

Cameron Thompson | Minnesota Sports Fan

Minnesota Twins got to see something a little closer to actual baseball Wednesday night. The Twins lost to the Chicago Cubs 4-3 in their first and only exhibition game against another team. While it was a close loss to a team potentially on a path to win the NL Central, it still left a bitter taste for many.

FINAL: Cubs 4, #MNTwins 3.

Next up… #OpeningDay!

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) July 23, 2020

The Twins trotted out their fifth starter, Homer Bailey, in their final warmup before the season starts on Friday. And boy did he live up to his name. Bailey surrendered three homers in three innings. This included a two-run blast from ailing Anthony Rizzo in the first inning…with no outs. Along with a Wilson Contreras no-doubter. Homer’s final line?

3.0 IP, 4 ER, 5 H, 3 HR, 2 BB, 3 K.

Uffda.

Homer Bailey with a lot of meatballs to #Cubs batters through 1.2 IP tonight for #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/j2WxX8AnLw

— Ted (@tlschwerz) July 22, 2020

I knew there was a reason I traded him early in the season in my Out Of The Park simulation.

QUIET OFFENSIVE NIGHT

The Twins offense fell relatively flat in the game. Eddie Rosario’s double was the only extra-base hit registered by the Twins. In fact they only mustered four more hits total (all singles) from Rosario, Josh Donaldson, Ehire Adrianzam and Luis Arraez.

Although down in a 3-0 hole after the first inning, the Twins scrounged together some runs to make it interesting. The first two coming off two passed balls and a wild pitch. However, the power bats were silent. The top of the order in Mitch Garver and Nelson Cruz were mostly silent and Miguel Sano only reached base on a walk.

M5 — Maples strikes Cruz out swinging to end inning after wild pitch plates another run. M5 || Twins 2, Cubs 4: https://t.co/jJevaQs4o2

— CubsHQ.com (@ChicagoCubsHQ) July 23, 2020

The Twins would make it a one-run game in the seventh thanks to a bases-loaded groundout from Jorge Polanco to make it 4-3. But starting pitching and a lack of offensive power doomed them from the start.

THE BULLPEN WAS FIRE

However, there were some silver linings from the exhibition loss. The bullpen was fantastic! Seemingly set to build off a fantastic 2019. Five relievers pitched one inning each and the pen allowed only one hit and a sole walk. Prospect Jorge Alcala was the brightest spot of the game. With a flaming 99-mph fastball and filthy breaking ball, the young gun highlighted what we can expect from him in the near future.

? Jorge Alcala 99 mph swinging strikeout #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/I57fUvHi2f

— Tom Froemming (@TFTwins) July 23, 2020

It is pretty evident that the offense will need some time to get up to speed. After becoming used to the aptly named Bombas of 2019 and the 2020 Summer Camp, the team failed to hit any Wednesday. They also scoring no runs off hits. But again, this game doesn’t count. Think of it as the first true warm-up before facing the White Sox on Friday night.

WHO TO EXPECT ON THE 30-MAN ROSTER

One thing to note: With the game against the Cubs being an exhibition, the team likely did not bring everyone who would make their initial 30-man Opening Day Roster.

This includes the likes of Byron Buxton, who was injured last week but could make the trip to Chicago for Opening Day.

Additionally, I believe it is unlikely we see Jorge Alcala and Caleb Thielbar make the initial roster too. Although they showed moxie in their outings on Wednesday, the team is too deep to bring on guys who would need additional rest out of the pen before Friday.

Caleb Thielbar mechanics #MNTwins pic.twitter.com/a8AnnmPg9E

— Tom Froemming (@TFTwins) July 23, 2020

When considering that manager Rocco Baldelli likes to ensure bullpen arms do not pitch on consecutive days, the quick ramp up to the regular season could make him even more cautious. Even with the White Sox series beginning two days after the Cubs game.

As for the starting rotation, fans will have to brace themselves for a change. Jake Odorizzi will start the season on the injured-list due to upper back stiffness. I still expect him to only miss one turn through the rotation and be back for his second start. That could be the home opener against Cleveland. In the meantime, expect youngster Randy Dobnak to slot in if Baldelli decides to go with a five-man rotation.

Jake Odorizzi is starting the season on the IL (back soreness). #MNTwins

— danhayesmlb (@DanHayesMLB) July 23, 2020

Because this game didn’t count, my 60-0 prediction still stands and I am absolutely behind the Twins winning it all in 2020!

Jack Kewitsch | Minnesota Sports Fan

Source: #MNTwins to sign pitchers Homer Bailey and Rich Hill.

— Dan Hayes (@DanHayesMLB) December 31, 2019

Source: Hill deal is $3m guarantee with $9.5 in performance bonuses that max out with 75 innings pitched or 15 GS https://t.co/vpDMZBYsRW

— Rob Bradford (@bradfo) December 31, 2019

Source: Homer Bailey's deal is one year for $7 million. Also includes performance bonuses if he reaches 180 innings. #MNTwins

— Dan Hayes (@DanHayesMLB) December 31, 2019

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This one is fresh off the Twitter press, fam! The Minnesota Twins have finally jumped head, feet, ass….. actually they are still dry-first into the free agency pool. 33-year-old Homer Bailey and 39-year-old Rich Hill are now starting pitchers for the Minnesota Twins, according to sources through Dan Hayes of The Athletic.

Unfortunately for Twins fans who want to win playoff games… these moves hopefully will not matter. Homer Bailey is a 5th-ish starter, who hopefully won’t see the mound to start a playoff game. Rich Hill, on the other hand, has been REALLY good even though he could be living in a Seniors Home during the offseason. Also, he’s out for the first two months dealing with an injury… which makes sense being he is an old man and that’s what happens. His wife is also a firecracker who likes to get arrested and kicked out of football stadiums.

I don’t want to jump to conclusions and say this is all the Twins front office will do with the starting rotation for 2020. I really hope these are depth moves, knowing you’ll need plenty of that as you grind through a 162-game season. I’m not even going to go down the road to the contrary……….. I'[m just going to pray this isn’t it.

Because, Homer Bailey and Rich Hill definitely are not it, fam.

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Homer Bailey Career Stats (via Baseball-Reference)

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Rich Hill Career Stats (via Baseball-Reference)

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Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

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